John of Worcester. 1040. Harold (age 24), king of England, died at London, and was buried at Westminster. After his funeral, the nobles of almost the whole of England sent envoys to Hardicanute (age 22) at Bruges, where he was staying with his mother (age 55), and, thinking it was for the best, invited him to come to England and ascend the throne. Thereupon, he fitted out fifty ships, and embarking Danish troops, before midsummer sailed over to England, where he was received with universal joy, and shortly afterwards crowned; but during his government he did nothing worthy his royal power. For as soon as he began to reign, calling to mind the injuries which both he and his mother had suffered at the hands of his predecessor, and reputed brother, king Harold (age 24), he despatched to London, Ælfric, archbishop of York, and earl Godwin (age 39), with Stor, the master of his household, Edric, his steward, Thrond, captain of his guards, and other men of high rank, with orders to dig up the body of Harold (age 24) and throw it into a sewer; and when it was thrown there, he caused it to be dragged out and cast into the river Thames. Shortly afterwards, it was picked up by a fisherman, and being immediately brought to the Danes, was honourably buried by them in a cemetery they possessed at London.⁶⁰ After this, he ordered that eight marks should be paid to every rower in his fleet, and twelve to each steersman, to be levied from the whole of England; a tax so burthensome, that scarcely any one would pay it, and he became thoroughly detested by those who at first were most anxious for his coming. Besides, he was greatly incensed against earl Godwin (age 39), and Living, bishop of Worcester, for the death of his brother Alfred, of which they were accused by Ælfric, archbishop of York, and some others. In consequence, he took the bishopric of Worcester from Living and gave it to Ælfric; but the following year, he ejected Ælfric and graciously restored Living, who had made his peace with him.

Note 60. The cemetery of St Clement-Danes, where the Northmen had a settlement on the bank of the Thames, outside the walls of London. The Saxon Chronicle is silent as to Harold's corpse being thrown into the Thames and fished up, but Henry of Huntingdon gives the same account as our author.

Effigy of King John. THIS remarkable personage [King John], the events of whose "troublesome reign" are so conspicuous in English History—and from whose disputes with his Barons we derive the foundation deed of our liberties, Magna Charta, was born at Oxford in 1166. He was the youngest son of Henry the Second, by his wife Eleanor of Guienne. His father jestingly called him Sans Terre or Lackland, as if, being born last, he had nothing left to give him. He, however, created him Earl of Mortagne in Flanders (latinized in the public acts of the time "Comes Moritonie"), of Cornwall, and Gloucester, made him titular King of Ireland, which grant was confirmed by the Pope, and endowed him with divers other honours and possessions. His first wife [Note. King John was betrothed, not married, to Alice] was Alice, daughter of Humbert second Earl of Maurienne, now called Savoy; this marriage was contracted by the parties in their childhood, A. D. 1173, and John, by the death of Alice, lost his claim, in her right, to her fathers possessions. His second wife was Isabella, daughter of Robert Earl of Gloucester, natural son of King Henry the First [Note. Isabella was the daughter of William Fitzrobert 2nd Earl Gloucester who was the son of Robert Earl of Gloucester]; but falling desperately in love with Isabella, daughter of Aymer Earl of Angoulesme, he procured a divorce from Isabella of Gloucester, under the plea of having contracted a marriage with her within the third degree of consanguinity, and in 1200 married Isabella de Angoulesme. King John, in the midst of public commotions (to which his misgovernment had largely contributed) and adverse fortune, was cut off by death at Newark, on the 19th October 1216, in the eighteenth year of his reign. His death is assigned by Matthew Paris, a writer who lived in his own time, to natural causes, induced by grief for the disaster which had occurred to his army in crossing the Well Stream or Lincoln Washes, in his march to oppose Lewis son of the King of France, who, backed by the discontented Barons, pretended to his Kingdom. Having rested at Swineshead^a Abbey, in his way to Newark, for a night, a story gained ground that the final catastrophe of his life was accelerated by poison administered to him by a monk. There is no conclusive circumstantial evidence to support this tale. Speed, the historian, asserts, that it was believed as a fact by his son King Henrv the Third, and refers, as his authority, to the reply made by that King to the hold address of the Prior of the Hospitallers at Clerkenwell as related by Matthew Paris. The expressions of that writer appear, however, too vague to support such an inference^b. The poisoning of John must, therefore, remain in the list of insoluble historic doubts. His own will, preserved in the archives of the Dean and Chapter of Worcester, merely says, that, being seized with a severe distemper he has no time for making particular arrangements. He appoints certain nobles and dignified ecclesiastics his executors, directs them, in general terms, by donations to religious houses, and alms to the poor, to make, for the good of his soul, reparation for injuries done to God and holy Church. He annexes the usual anathema against any who shall infringe their disposition of his property. He directs his body to he buried in the Church of St. Mary and St. Wulstan, the Cathedral at Worcester [Map]. John, in his last moments, commended his soul to God and St. Wulstan, his body, royally attired, was conveyed to Worcester, over his head was placed a monk's cowl, as a sort of cover for all his sins and a passport to Heaven. He was interred between St. Oswald and St. Wulstan, whose graves are in the Chapel of the Virgin at the eastern extremity of the Cathedral [Map]. Thence, in all probability, they underwent translation to their present situation before the high altar in the Choir.

Note a. Not Swinestead for Swineshead is an error which has crept into some received authorities owing to the great similarity in name of these two different piaces in Lincolnshire. See Gent. Mag. June 1855, p.491.

Note b. These are given as the King's words, "O quid sibi vuit istud, vos Anglici, vultis ne me sicut quondam patrem meum a regno precipitate atque necare prsecipitatum [Oh, what does that mean, you Englishmen, do you wish that you would not rush me from the kingdom and kill me as my father once was]?" Matt. Paris, Hist. Angi. edit. Watts, p. 854.

Pershore Abbey [Map]. Early Medieval. Monument possibly to William de Harley. Left Leg Over Right. Sword in Left Hand. Holding a horn in his right hand. Fine band around his head. Head on single cushion.

Detailed description from Mark Downing of the Church Monuments Society posted to Facebook; abridged:

This limestone effigy lies flat on its back on a stone coffin, and is positioned in the middle of the south transept. The legs are missing below the knees. The figure is represented cross-legged (left over right). Below the head is a single rectangular cushion.

It wears a mail hauberk, mitten gauntlets and a coif all made in one. There is a cord around the head, above the face-opening, passing through rings of mail at wide intervals. A triangular flap which can be seen on the left side of the neck, represents the part of the mail coif called a ventail. This was a flap of mail drawn across the mouth to close the face-opening, and was secured to the temple either by a strap and buckle, or by a knotted cord. The mail of the armour is rendered by parallel rows of C's, alternate rows having the curves lying in the opposite directions. The rows of mail run around the coif, arms and hauberk. The left arm is partially concealed underneath the shield with the palm of the hand resting on top of the pommel of the sword. The right hand is bare, with the mitten-gauntlet off the hand, hanging loose around the wrist. The hand is holding a hunting horn at hip level, which has a strap passing through the lower-ring of a figure eight terminal. This strap is then attached around the horn at its rear and centre. Attached to the upper ring of the terminal is a loose strap which may have been used to suspend the horn from either the sword-belt or a baldric, the loose end falling underneath the hand.

Clearly shown within the opening of the gown, beneath the arm is an additional underlying body-defence. This almost certainly represents a coat of plates, joined together at the side by three straps with rectangular buckles, the straps emerging from within the upper-breast: the rivets would have been painted on. An effigy in the Temple church, London, is wearing a similar plate defence. The coat of plates consisted of a poncho-like garment with either a solid breast-plate sewn into it, or a series of metal plates attached by rivets to a textile cover. Visible at the neck, in the aperture of the coif, is a smooth garment. Presumably this represents the upper-chest portion of the coat of plates described above.

Worn over the coat of plates is a long sleeveless gown reaching to the calf, with the front open in the usual V-fashion. On the left arm, suspended from a guige which passes diagonally across the chest and over the right shoulder, is a long kite-shaped shield, which is concave towards the body. The shield is plain with no traces of heraldry present. Biting the tip of the shield is a damaged creature, possibly a griffin, dragon or wyvern.

The sword belt which has a square buckle is decorated with I-shaped bars, having a circular boss in their centres. The belt is attached to the scabbard by a single band. The loose portion of the belt falls to the thigh. The pommel of the sword is virtually concealed by the left hand. The grip is of medium length and the remains of the right quillon is worn. The sword, in its scabbard, lies at an angle on the left side of the figure, its tip broken.

Covering the knees and the lower part of the legs are mail hose. The mail represented in the same manner as on the coif and arms. Shown below the left knee is a strap, intended to stop the mail sagging down the leg.

Unfortunately the effigy has been damaged and has lost the lower part of the legs. A drawing by Thomas Dingley in the seventeenth century shows the effigy complete with an animal resting below the feet. The drawing also shows that originally stiff-leaf foliage was represented running along the right-hand edge of the slab, similar to that of William Longespèe ob.1227 (Wiltshire) Salisbury Cathedral [Map].

In 1838 the effigy was found buried on the north side of the church, with the stone coffin placed beneath it. Thomas Habington recorded the effigy on the north side of the quire, also with a hare at his feet which is now missing.

As previously mentioned a serpent or dragon is biting the point of the shield. The theory as to why these creatures are represented on monuments is not fully understood, but may derive from Psalm 91, v. 13. 'Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon, shalt thou trample under foot'. These type of creatures are found on effigies in the North-East of England, for example at Egglesclffe, (Durham), Fountains Abbey [Map] c.1325 and Bainton c.1320-40, (both Yorkshire). It must be remarked that the Pershore effigy is not related to the examples found in the North-East as can be observed on stylistic grounds. Lawrence Stone remarks on a Westminster-Lincoln stylistic connection which may carry some weight, but as the effigy is so singular it is very difficult to attribute it to any single group. However the upper-drapery is not too dissimilar to work at Worcester Cathedral [Map] (q.v.), and Alfred C. Fryer has attributed both Worcester (1) and Pershore to the 'Bristol Workshop'.

A very unusual feature is the presence of a horn which is held in the right hand. Other effigies known to the writer where horns are represented can be seen for instance at: Glinton (Northamptonshire) c.1300-1325, Newland (Gloucestershire) c.1457, Skegby, (Nottinghamshire) c.1300 and Wadworth (Yorkshire), c.1300, all are dressed in civilian clothes whereas the Pershore effigy is represented in armour. The reason why the Pershore effigy is represented with a horn is open to at least two theories. The traditional belief is that he was a forest ranger or warden of the Kings forest. The second is that he held land by the horn, 'horngeld'. A splendid medieval oliphant horn known as 'The Savernake Horn' is preserved in the British Museum, London, which has silver enamelled mounts decorated with hunting dogs, forest animals, a seated King, a bishop and a forester. It is thought to have once belonged to the Sturmy family who were hereditary wardens of the Savernake forest from the early twelfth century until the first quarter of the fifteenth century and would add most weight to the theory of the Pershore effigy being a forest warden.

Hudibras On Samuel Butler Author of Hudibras. Our author received his first rudiments of learning at home; he was afterwards sent to the college school at Worcester, then taught by Mr. Henry Bright,* prebendary of that cathedral, a celebrated scholar and many years the famous master of the King's school there; one who made his business his delight; and though in very easy circumstances continued to teach for the sake of doing good, by benefiting the families of the neighbouring gentlemen, who thought themselves happy in having their sons instructed by him.

Note 2. Mr. Bright is buried in the cathedral church of Worcester [Map] near the north pillar at the foot of the steps which lead to the choir. He was born 1562, appointed schoolmaster 1586 made prebendary 1619, died 1626. The inscription in capitals, on a mural stone, now placed in what is called the Bishop's Chapel, is as follows:

Mane hospes et lege,

Magister HENRICUS BRIGHT,

Celeberrimus gymnasiarcha.

Qui Bcholse regi» istic fimdatae per totos 40 annos

summa cum laude praefuit.

Continues.